HCA Virginia Physicians
November 17, 2020

Richmond, VA – HCA Virginia’s Chippenham Hospital  this week launched a new surgical weight loss service, led by Dr. Tejwant Datta, to help to improve the health and lifespan of those struggling with obesity. Dr. Datta will be practicing at Commonwealth Surgical Associates, a newly established surgical practice with HCA Virginia Physicians.

Dr. Datta has served the greater Richmond community since 2010 and has been honored as one of the region’s top bariatric surgeons. Prior to joining HCA Virginia Physicians, he successfully established a robust bariatric and robotic surgery program in the Petersburg/Tri-Cities area.

“I am pleased to join Chippenham Hospital, one of the region’s top medical facilities, and to spearhead the development of weight loss surgery options for our patients,” said Dr. Datta. “Chippenham Hospital and HCA Virginia provide some of the region’s best technology, physicians, facilities, and quality options across the entire healthcare continuum.”

“Our new Bariatric service at Chippenham Hospital furthers our commitment to the care and improvement of the health and lives of the people in our community,” said Dr. William Lunn, chief executive officer of Chippenham Hospital. “Our staff and I are excited to have Dr. Datta partner with us on helping our patients with their life-changing decision to better their well-being.”

About surgical weight loss

Bariatric (weight loss) surgery is not a cosmetic procedure. It's an educated surgical decision to improve a patient's health and lifespan. Approximately 500 million adults worldwide are affected by obesity and one billion are overweight, including 48 million children.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, (CDC) reports from 1999 to 2016 obesity prevalence among U.S. adults increased from 30.5 percent to 39.6 percent. The epidemic has also increased in severity, with 5.7 percent of American adults, or nearly 14 million people, affected by severe obesity.

Bariatric surgery can help improve or resolve many weight-related medical problems including type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, asthma, arthritis, high cholesterol, obstructive sleep apnea, fatty liver disease, urinary stress incontinence, osteoarthritis, and gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD), among many others. Obesity also increases the risk of certain types of cancer, including endometrial, colon, and breast cancer. Recent studies have also linked COVID-19 risk to obesity.

Learn more about Chippenham Hospital's surgical weight loss program.